Wright State set to host 2024 Horizon League Baseball Championship

Thursday, May 23

Dayton, OH

11 AM

Wright State University

No. 6 Youngstown State

Photo by: Joseph Craven

Wright State set to host 2024 Horizon League Baseball Championship

5/19/2024 11:45:00 AM | Baseball

Game Notes HL Championship Live Stats

DAYTON – Regular season champion Wright State will begin the postseason on Thursday morning, as the top-seeded Raiders will host the 2024 Horizon League Championship at Nischwitz Stadium all week long.

The Raiders, who locked up the regular season title Saturday afternoon on Andrew Patrick's walkoff homer, enter the tournament at 31-22 overall with a 20-10 Horizon League mark. Wright State is 14-6 at The Nisch this spring.

CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL | BUY TICKETS NOW

The Horizon League Championship will begin with three games at Nischwitz Stadium on Wednesday, with No. 4 seed Milwaukee taking on No. 5 seed Purdue Fort Wayne and No. 3 seed Oakland taking on No. 6 seed Youngstown State, with the two losers of the opening games meeting Wednesday night in an elimination game.

Wright State will face the lowest seeded winner from Wednesday's first two games on Thursday morning in an 11 a.m. first pitch at The Nisch. No. 2 seed Northern Kentucky will face the highest remaining seed winner from Wednesday on Thursday afternoon at 3 p.m. before the third and final game on Thursday will get underway at approximately 7 p.m.

Friday action gets underway with a winners bracket contest at 11 a.m., followed by subsequent games at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday's championship game set for a noon first pitch, with the if necessary game to follow.

All games of the 2024 Horizon League Championship will air on either ESPN+, with live stats available to follow the action as well.

Tickets will be sold for the Championship, with single-day and all-tournament passes available. All tickets are mobile. It is recommended that fans purchase ahead of time. Anyone who does not have a smartphone can purchase at the gate. Tickets purchased at the gate will be texted to customers.

SIX-PEAT
The Raiders defeated Northern Kentucky in the series finale on Saturday, May 18, 12-9, clinching their sixth consecutive Horizon League regular season title. WSU has won 20 or more games against HL teams each year in the stretch.

ALL-LEAGUE HONORS
The Raiders put three players, Julian Greenwell, Sammy Sass, and Ben Vore, on the All-League First Team, and four on the All-League Second Team, Cam Allen, Patrick Fultz, Jay Luikart, and Boston Smith. Allen collected a second honor, being added to the All-Freshman team alongside teammate Chet Lax. Jake Shirk was recognized as a finalist for the newly added Sportsmanship award.

Head coach Alex Sogard was awarded his fourth Coach of the Year award, continuing his program record broken for most earned at Wright State. He shares the title with Northern Kentucky head coach Dizzy Peyton.

COACH OF THE YEAR
Head coach Alex Sogard won Horizon League Coach of the Year honors after leading the Raiders to a 31-22 overall record and their sixth consecutive HL Regular Season title. He also earned the award in the 2019, 2021, and 2023 campaigns, becoming the first-ever Raider head coach to win four HL Coach of the Year honors. The previous record of two was held by former WSU skippers Rob Cooper (2010, 2011) and Greg Lovelady (2014, 2016). Dating back to the 2010 season, Wright State coaches have won eight of the 14 Coach of the Year honors (Sogard, Cooper, Lovelady and Jeff Mercer (2018)). Legendary Raider head coach Ron Nischwitz was the 2004 HL Coach of the Year.

SCOUTING THE HORIZON LEAGUE
MILWAUKEE
Milwaukee is currently 18-34 overall and 13-17 in the Horizon League. The Raiders went 3-3 against MKE, taking their home series 2-1 (9-8, 6-19, 12-6), March 15-17, going 1-2 (9-10, 16-8, 6-7) on the Panther's turf, April 19-21. The Raiders hit .308 in their six games against MKE with 58 runs on 64 hits. They had 27 extra-base hits with 11 doubles, one triple, and 15 home runs. Ben Vore stood out with 11 RBI, batting .417 with ten hits, four of which being homers.

The Raider pitching staff held MKE. To a .317 batting average, allowing 58 runs on 70 hits with 50 batters struck out.

NORTHERN KENTUCKY
Northern Kentucky ended the regular season with a 32-22 overall record, going 19-11 in the Horizon League. Wright State went 3-3 against the Norse, as both teams won their away series. Wright State took the first series 2-1 (14-15, 12-9, 16-11), April 12-14, while losing the series in the final week of HL play 1-2 (5-8, 2-8, 12-9), May 16-18. The Raiders held a .300 batting average over the Norse, adding 61 runs on 66 hits, 31 of which being for extra-bases. Julian Greenwell stood out against NKU, adding 15 hits with six doubles and three home runs, tallying 12 RBI and batting .500.

Wright State's pitchers held NKU to a .329 batting average, allowing 60 runs on 77 hits with 55 batters struck out.

OAKLAND
Oakland ended the season going 31-25 overall and 18-12 in the Horizon League. Wright State went 3-3 against the Golden Grizzlies, falling in the series at home 2-1 (1-19, 5-4, 7-12) on March 28-30, and taking the series in Rochester (7-6, 12-15, 4-2) May 3-5. Wright State held a .286 batting average against the Golden Grizzlies, adding 36 runs on 56 hits, including 13 doubles and 14 homers. Jay Luikart stood out over the six games, tallying eight RBI with eight hits, including one double and two homers, while batting .348.

The Raider pitching staff held Oakland to a .346 batting average, allowing 58 runs on 74 hits with 49 strikeouts. Garrett Peters was awarded the win in two matchups against Oakland, and Cam Allen the save in two matchups.

PURDUE FORT WAYNE
The Mastodons are 18-35 on the season, going 11-19 in the Horizon League. The Raiders took all but one game against Purdue Fort Wayne, going 2-1 (16-13, 2-11, 14-2) in the first series, March 22-24, and sweeping the 'Dons at home (5-1, 11-4, 2-1), April 26-28. Wright State bat .351 against PFW, adding 71 runs on 50 hits, with 10 doubles and seven homers. Boston Smith stood out against the Dons, holding a .474 batting average with nine hits, including two doubles and three home runs, tallying eight RBI.

The Raider pitching staff held PFW to a .291 batting average, allowing 32 runs on 58 hits with 42 strikeouts. Garret Simpson earned two wins against the 'Dons, and Garrett Peters two saves.

YOUNGSTOWN STATE
Youngstown State finalized the regular season with a 12-42 overall record, going 9-21 in the Horizon League. The Raiders swept both series against the Penguins, going 15-12, 8-7, 11-1, at home, April 5-7, and 4-3, 11-7, 10-7, in Niles, May 10-12. Wright State held a .332 batting average against the 'Guins, adding 59 runs on 67 hits, 27 for extra-bases. Ben Vore stood out over the six games, batting .444 with ten hits, five for extra-bases, tallying 14 RBI, while going five-for-five on stolen bases.

The Raider pitching staff held YSU to a .277 batting average, allowing 37 runs on 57 hits with 45 batters struck out. Garrett Peters earned two wins against the 'Guins.

LEAGUE STANDINGS
Wright State leads the Horizon League with a 20-10 conference record. Below them is the previous leader Northern Kentucky with a 19-11 HL record. Sitting third is Oakland, going 18-12 in the league. Rounding out the league is Milwaukee, sitting fourth with a 13-17 HL record. They are followed by Purdue Fort Wayne's 11-19 record and Youngstown State going 9-21.

LAST TIME OUT
The Raiders ended the regular season with a three-game series against Northern Kentucky, falling short in games one and two, 5-8, 2-8, and taking game three 12-9.

NATIONWIDE NUMBERS
Wright State's .316 batting average puts them No. 11 nationally, sitting No. 11 with 592 hits on the season and No. 12 with 484 runs. Averaging 9.1 runs per game, the Raiders come in tenth nationally. When it comes to extra-base hitting, the Raiders do not shy away, sitting at No. 25 with 118 doubles, and tenth with 110 home runs, ninth with 2.08 home runs per game. The Raiders rank eighth in the nation with their .569 slugging percentage, and No. 31 with a .414 on-base percentage.

NATIONALLY KNOWN
Wright State is no stranger to national rankings, with four Raiders ranked highly in national stats. Julian Greenwell ranks eighth with .48 doubles per game, and No. 14 with his .404 batting average. With an average of .41 doubles per game, Sammy Sass ranks No. 33 nationally. Sass and Greenwell are both ranked in hits per game, as Greenwell comes in at No. 13 with 1.64 hits per game, and Sass No. 24 with 1.59 hits per game.

When it comes to RBI, Ben Vore is a commonly known name. With 72 RBI on the season, Vore ranks No. 14 nationally, No. 18 averaging 1.38 RBI per game.

Jake Shirk comes in at No. 27 with 1.66 walks allowed per nine innings.

LEADING THE LEAGUE AT BAT
The Raiders dominate the HL leaders at bat, taking up three of the top five spots when it comes to RBI (Ben Vore– 72, 2; Jay Luikart– 65, 3; Sammy Sass – 61, 5). Sass sits second in the league with 78 hits on the season, followed by Luikart sitting fifth with 73 hits. Julian Greenwell leads the HL with a .404 batting average, while Sass's .368 batting average sits him third in the league.

The Raiders have three HL leaders when it comes to home runs, as Vore leads with 19 homers on the season, closely trailed by Boston Smith and Luikart with 18. Smith and Vore sit tied for fourth with four triples. Greenwell and Sass sit tied for third in the League with 20 doubles each. Sass and Vore lead the league with five sacrifice flies.

Wright State dominates in slugging percentages, with three batters in the top five spots, as Smith sits second with a .713 slugging percentage, Greenwell sits third (.708), and Vore fourth (.700). Sass leads the league as the toughest to strikeout with just 15 strikeouts in his 171 at bats, averaging one strikeout every 11.4 at bats. Sass sits third with a strikeout every 10.1 at bats.

SCORING BIG
Wright State has had many high-scoring games this season, with 23 total ten-plus run games. The Raiders had a six-game streak scoring ten or more runs (4/7/24-4/16/24), the most in program history. The Raiders preform best preforming in double-figures, going 18-5 when finishing with ten or more runs.

BACK-TO-BACK BATTER OF THE WEEK
Sammy Sass earned his second consecutive Horizon League batter of the week honor on April 16, being awarded the honor previously on April 9.

The Senior earned his second batter of the week award after batting .611 with 11 hits in 18 at-bats against Miami (OH) and Northern Kentucky. He tallied eight extra base hits, made up by three doubles and five home runs, with 14 total RBI and a 1.611 slugging percentage over the four games. Of his five homers, four came in one game against Miami (OH), making him the just second NCAA DI batter to do so in the 2024 season. Sass held a .538 batting average against NKU, recording eight RBI over three games.

Sass earned his first weekly award after going 10-for-17, with two doubles and a triple, tallying nine RBI and three runs scored over the week, helping to lead the Raiders to a 4-0 April start. Sass finished the week with a .600 on base percentage and .824 slugging percentage. The Upper Arlington, Ohio native held a .615 batting average against Horizon League opponent Youngstown State, tallying eight RBI and two stolen bases against the Penguins. Sass's ten hits over the week sat him No. 11 in national stats and at the top of the Horizon League.

JAY LUIKART-HL BATTER OF THE WEEK
Jay Luikart was named the Horizon League baseball batter of the week on March 19, being the first Raider to be awarded a HL player of the week award in the 2024 season.

Luikart batted .611 (11-for-18) with a 1.111 slugging percentage, three doubles, two home runs, 12 RBI, and five runs scored in four games over the week, greatly leading the team to a 3-1 record. Luikart recorded a league leading and career best of five hits in his six at bats against Toledo, including one double and a home run in his five RBI. The Ashland, Ohio native averaged .500 at bat in the Horizon League opening weekend, recording two doubles and a home run against Milwaukee. Luikart led the team with seven RBI over the Panthers, and reached 11 total bases.

D1BASEBALL.COM PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Sammy Sass was named the D1Baseball.com player of the week on April 15. Sass's weekly honors come in part after a monumental midweek game against Miami (OH), recording four home runs in a single game. This feat has only been reached one other time in the 2024 season, and is a first in the Horizon League. Against Miami, Sass recorded four runs in five at-bats, tallying six RBI, reaching base once on balls and again on a hit by pitch.

Over the week, the Upper Arlington, Ohio native averaged .611 at bat, recording 11 hits in 18 at-bats against Miami and Horizon League opponent Northern Kentucky University. He finished the week with eight extra-base hits, including his four midweek homers, as well as three doubles and another home run against NKU. Sass tallied 14 RBI, a 1.611 slugging percentage, and a .873 weighted on-base percentage over the four games.

ROOKIE TRIO TAKES DOWN PFW
First-year Raiders have made a name for themselves this season. Notably in the series finale against Purdue Fort Wayne, where an all-freshman pitching staff earned the series sweeping win. Starting pitcher Chet Lax put in four innings of work, allowing only one run on five hits with one walk and two strikeouts. Cam Allen earned his first collegiate win, entering to pitch from the fifth to eighth innings, allowing no runs with only one hit and one walk, striking out three batters. Brayden Schoetzow was awarded the save after closing the game, allowing only one hit in the final inning. The three pitchers held the Mastodons to a .219 batting average.

GRAND SLAM-ING GREENWELL
Julian Greenwell made quite an impact on April 14, leading Wright State to the rubber match victory over Northern Kentucky with two grand slams. Greenwell recorded his first grand slam of the Sunday afternoon game after Boston Smith reached on a single, advancing on a wild pitch, Andrew Patrick was walked, and Carson Clark reached on a hit by pitch, taking a 7-4 lead in the fourth. The Norse returned, tying the game at seven in the bottom of the fourth. The Raiders regained and held the advantage for the remainder of the game, starting with a Smith RBI double in the top of the fifth. After Patrick and Fultz reached base on walks, the bases were loaded for Greenwell to record his second grand slam of the day, tallying eight RBI on the day.

ONE… TWO… THREE… FOUR HOME RUNS
Putting himself on everyone's radar, Sammy Sass recorded an astounding four home runs on April 9 in the midweek matchup against Miami (OH) during the Joe Nuxhall Classic. Sass was only the second batter in the nation to record four homers in a single game during the 2024 season.

Sass opened the afternoon game adding the first two runs to the board with a two-RBI bomb to left field in the first inning. He followed with another two-RBI home run, hitting over the "S" of the "Prasco Park" sign in left center. Making it three-for-three on the day, Sass hit it off the foul pole, for a solo home run in the fourth. Sass added his fourth and final home run of the day driving into left field on the first pitch in the bottom of the eighth. His four homers added up to six RBI on the day.

GARRETT PETERS' CAREER-HIGH GAME
In game two of the three game series against Oakland, Garrett Peters set a career and team-season high of eight batters struck out. Peters was awarded his second win on the season after entering in the fifth inning to pitch four and one third innings, allowing only one run on three hits.

SMITH'S GRAND SLAM
After being down 10-6 going into the sixth, Wright State made a comeback to win the series opener at Purdue Fort Wayne, 16-13. After adding only one run in the sixth, the Raiders took the seventh inning lead, beginning with Dane Thomas scoring on a throwing error and a walked RBI by Vore, lowering the PFW lead to one. With the bases loaded, Boston Smith took the first pitch for a homer to left center, giving Wright State a 13-10 lead, paving the way for their Friday win.

2ND LIEUTENANT DUKE BENGE
This season the Raiders will be even closer to the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, as recent Air Force Academy graduate 2nd Lieutenant Duke Benge will be training with both the Air Force and Wright State Baseball. He is currently enrolled in the sports management program at WSU and earning a master's degree in operational logistics on base as he waits for a spot in the Wright-Patterson pilot training program. Benge attended and played for the Air Force Academy over the past four seasons, notably becoming the first-ever cadet-athlete from Air Force or any service academy to make the NWL All-Star game.

PRESEASON ACCOLADES
The Raiders were claimed the top spot in the 2024 Horizon League preseason poll, with 34 points and four first-place votes. Multiple Raiders were awarded preseason honors by D1 Baseball. Jay Luikart and Andrew Patrick were honored in the top 100 outfielders, and Sammy Sass in the top 50 catchers. D1 Baseball named Patrick as the top prospect of the Horizon League, followed by Ty Roder as the number five prospect.

COACHING SUCCESS
At the conclusion of the 2023 seaon, Alex Sogard was 152-89 at the helm of the Raiders. Sogard has guided the Raiders to three consecutive NCAA Regional appearances. He is the first in WSU program history to be awarded HL Coach of the Year for three consecutive years. The Phoenix, Arizona, native led WSU to a 42-17 record in 2019, the most wins by a first-year head coach in program history. Wright State beat three ranked teams in 2019 and took down top-ranked Louisville in the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign before going 35-13 in 2021 on the way to the Horizon League regular season and tournament titles. In 2021, Sogard collected ABCA/ATEC East Coach of the Year honors, which was following by his naming to the 2021 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team coaching staff.

PRO RAIDERS
The Raiders are no strangers to sending their athletes pro, with two current professional players, Sean Murphy and Jesse Scholtens. Murphy debuted with the Athletics in September 2019 and earned the Gold Glove award following the 2021 season. In 2023, Murphy served as the starting catcher on the National League All-Stars. team signed a 6-year, $73 million contract extension with the Atlanta Braves in December 2022, which includes a $15 million club option for the 2029 season. Scholten recently made his debut with the Chicago White Sox in September 2023 after working his way through the minors.

DRAFT TALENT
The 2023 draft gave attention to a few of the Raidergang. Middle infielder, Justin Reimer, was the first Raider to be picked in the 2023 MLB draft, being the 133rd pick in the fourth round. Before a season-ending injury, Reimer put up .323/.563/.645 through the first 12 games of 2023, with four extra-base hits (3 home runs), seven runs batted in, 12 runs scored, 15 walks, and three stolen bases. He reached base in all 12 games, including multiple times on eight occasions. Right-handed pitcher, Luke Stofel, comes in as the second Raider to sign a professional contract in Major League Baseball, joining the Detroit Tigers as a free agent. Stofel is the first Raider in nearly a quarter-century to sign with the Tigers, the previous being Busty Beam in the 20th round of the 1999 MLB draft. A notable mention, Alex Theis, signed a professional contract with the Florence Y'alls of the Frontier League.